


The Way Back Home

by heavyheart



Category: The Crew - Fandom
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-02-24
Updated: 2013-02-24
Packaged: 2017-12-03 11:04:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/697575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heavyheart/pseuds/heavyheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are almost twenty of them staying in the two cabins, stuck for three weeks in the middle of the fucking winter, but. They’ll manage. Cuddle for warmth, and such.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Way Back Home

**Author's Note:**

> Oh god this is kind of a mess. Forgive me if your character wasn't stressed, it's a bit much to handle 17 people at once, but I will try to give you your moment somewhere in here. Each part will cover a week, so we have two more to go. Enjoy!

Austin gets there first. The cabins are a bit smaller than he had imagined- after all, there are almost twenty of them staying in the two of them, stuck for three weeks in the middle of the fucking winter, but. They’ll manage. Cuddle for warmth, and such.

He’s got on his not so new cardigan, the one he got last year when he’d only known these people for a few months. But it’s got a handful of good memories in it, if he remembers correctly. A few compliments from a presumably blushing Jo and soon enough it had been labeled The Jostin Sweater or something equally ridiculous. He plays with the fraying hem, smiles. He’s excited.

Ariel shows up next, drops her bags by the door and thanks the landlord before the two of them fling into an excited little jump of a hug, complete with muffled squeals, well, it’s not as weird as it maybe should be, meeting each other for the first time. But they've endured video chats and texting for a year now, all of them, so this is really just a step up. Neither of them even attempt to wipe the grins off of their faces.

Tasha and Victoria arrive soon after, (they’d managed to get their flights to land at the same time, and Ariel can all too easily imagine the cheesy, romantic airport running hug they had most likely exchanged) and it’s the four of them for a while (exchanging the horrors of smelly airplane bathrooms and odd seat partners), and it’s startlingly simple, being around the people they've only had half way access to for 15 months now.

But soon enough people begin to show up in hoards; clumps of them until all that’s left are the international’s (Jo and Jessica coming in from Sweden, and Marie and Luisa from Germany). Emily arrives just before Raygen barrels through the front door of the decidedly ‘main’ cabin (if only because the living room is about twice the size) and throws herself at Victoria, an excited ball of emotions. Brette and Michelle arrive together, all smiling faces and offers of bottles of wine and something that ends up being an entirely cheesy group hug. The next hour brings Savannah, Linda and Emi, snow caught up in hair and scarves from the storm that’s brewing outside. By the time the evening hits, Britta has found her way to the cabin, shedding layers as she runs to meet the group that’s found the living room the perfect space to sprawl out on top of one another half way.

It’s a little bit surreal, when Linda steps back for a moment to grab something to drink and eyes the lot of them from a safe distance. She remembers, briefly, a conversation with Ariel months before this plan was in the works about how maybe this could happen one day, back when all of them meeting was just a distant dream no one really saw as a reality. But then Jo had decided he was coming to the US to visit Victoria with the money he’d been saving up, and Austin wanted to make a trip while he was on break from his first year at college, and it just sort of came together. Nobody expected it to turn out so well, with everyone being able to take the time and to afford it (it hadn't been perfect- there had been fundraising and begging relatives and dipping into savings) but it had worked out, somehow. And it’s kind of a miracle.

Austin and Victoria get texts from Jo that him and Jessica have boarded and will be there in the morning, and Marie calls to say that her and Luisa scheduled to land around the same the time. So they settle in and swap travel stories sandwiched close to one another in a disfigured circle on the floor (apparently they'd barely let Emi board her plane because she's only fourteen- "nearly fifteen now," she reminds them- and she'd had to worm her way in and tell a few white lies, but it'd worked out) before the hunger pains start to hit.

Dinner, as expected, is a bit of a mess. They've ordered enough pizza to feed a small army, but somehow it disappears within moments. Austin grabs the last piece right as Tasha’s going for it, which causes a shriek of anger and an annoyed string of things to fall from her mouth. Austin only laughs and rests up against the kitchen counter next to Ariel, humming around his slice.

"You nervous?" She asks him, playing with her phone. 

He looks down at her, expression unreadable. "For which part?"

Ariel laughs at that, because, he knows what she's talking about. They've all known, for what seems like forever. "About Jo, you idiot. It's kind of scary." She pauses. "I'm scared for Marie, I think."

"I don't know, Ariel, I think we've known each other for long enough that it should be alright." Austin takes another bite and smiles. "I think I'm more excited, it's like... fucking  _finally_."

And he's right, when it comes down to it. She's still nervous (Marie will probably always have that effect on her), but this is real. Ariel finds that she's rather excited for the dumb little things, like hearing her voice (her and Luisa have been practicing their English with each other, as neither of them use it verbally back in Germany, for months now) and how she smells and what she looks like when she laughs. It's happening, and there's no point in panicking now.

It hits one am and the fight over cabins and roommates begins, before Tasha stakes claim to a room with Austin and Britta, and Victoria gets her own because she knows she'll end up sharing with Jo. Ariel takes the room in the back and refuses to let anyone inside because no matter how nervous Marie might make her, there's no one else she wants to share a room with more. Emily and Linda pile into the fourth room and fill up the first cabin. The rest of them just stay in the living room for the night, because the snow is still blowing and no one really feels like leaving when things have only just begun to settle in.

~

The knock on the door at seven the next morning wakes most of them out of their slumber, but only Ariel has the energy to get it from her place at one of the kitchen stools. She'd woken an hour ago, too nervous about Marie's arrival to get any sort of fulfilling rest. It doesn't really cross her mind who it is until she's opening the door and is faced with all six feet and three inches of Jo.

She doesn't even think before she's semi-propelling herself into his arms, a frantic squeak escaping out of her mouth before she can catch it. He stumbles back a bit, stunned, but squeezes her back and huffs out a laugh.

"I can't believe you're here, oh- Jessica!" She stops mid sentence when she see's Jessica half hidden behind Jo's tall figure and wraps her arms around her as well, who only seems a little bothered with the affection. "Here, I'm sorry come in, no ones really up yet."

The three of them slip into the kitchen and try to keep their voices low, but one by one everyone from the living room trickles in, filling up the small space with whisper laughs and hushed hello's as they attempt from waking up those still sleeping.

"Somebody should wake your boyfriend up," Emilie is the one to finally bring it up, propped up on the counter and fiddling with the spine of her notebook. "We all know Austin will be pissed if you're here and we don't tell him."

"What would I be pissed about?" A sleepy Austin comes into the kitchen rubbing both eyes with his fists, hair sticking up in odd directions and  sweatpants hanging low on his hips. He stops in his tracks when he see's Jo standing on the other side of the kitchen, mouth popping open just a little before he backs out and shuts himself in the bathroom. They sit around the table, just a little stunned for a moment, before Savannah lets out an awkward laugh. 

Austin emerges two minutes later looking completely cleaned up- hair fixed and eyes looking a hell of a lot less tired, and he's even exchanged his sweatpants for a pair of jeans, the sweater he fell asleep in still wrapped around him.

Jo speaks first, cheeks blushing pink as he stares across the room at Austin. "Hey,"

"Hi." Everyone else keeps quiet, watching it unfold before them, because yeah, they've all been waiting for this too. "C'mere."

They've made a lot of jokes about the two of them (millions of them by now, probably, but who's counting?) but watching Jo step towards Austin before falling into a hug and wrapping his arms around him is a little different. Tasha and Victoria of course choose this exact moment to walk into the kitchen, and one of them shrieks in surprise at the sight of Jo and Austin wrapped up in each other because Jo jumps away, the tips of  his ears red as he runs a hand through his hair and stares back at Austin with pursed lips.

They're given a break from the intensity only because Victoria's pushing her way into Jo's arms and he spins her around a bit and nobody can quite manage to stop smiling when they see Vic's eyes shining with happy tears. Jo's already a mess, pulling back to get a good look at her before hugging her again, and they're both laughing through the tears and commenting on how short she is, the two of them in their own little world for a moment. Tasha makes her way to Austin's side and offers a smile, because, this is big. Bigger than a lot of things, maybe. 

~

”Have you seen my sweatshirt Emily? I swear I just had it.” Ariel’s walking backwards, ducking into the bedrooms as she makes her way back towards the living room. 

Emily pops her head out of her room as she pulls on a pair of jeans (they've been lazing around for the most part of the morning, but Emily’s desperate for a real dinner tonight to celebrate, so she’s dragging Linda with her to the store, forcing them both out of sweats and into acceptable clothing). “The one you were wearing earlier? The Maroon one? I think it’s in the kitchen… or, somewhere weird.”

It’s kind of funny, how it's already become a bit like home. If Ariel closes her eyes she can hear Austin and Victoria laughing hysterically in the kitchen, and Tasha talking with Britta just a room over. The thought of them all together like this is enough home for a lifetime. She spins around so she can make her way through the hall safely, only to collide with another body, sending both of them falling gracelessly onto the ground. “I’m sorry- Ariel?”

“Marie.” Ariel pushes herself up so she’s facing her, noticing how much thicker her accent is now, when she’s only heard it over a crackling phone line for a year now. “When did you- you’re here!” Ariel let’s out a nervous laugh, fixes her hair and offers a hand to help Marie stand up. 

“I was going to try and sneak up on you, but,” the faintest hint of a blush colors her cheeks. “didn't work out so well.”

Ariel takes a moment to look her over- sheepish smile, brown hair damp from the melting snow, bright eyes. She’s even more beautiful in person.

“Well what are you doing, come here,” She gathers her up in her arms, smiling as she smells her coconut shampoo and feels how slight she is compared to herself, nearly four inches shorter, despite the age difference.

"Marie!" They only just let go of each other before Rayen is barreling past Ariel and knocking Marie down onto the carpet, again. Ariel can't help but be happy for the break before she has to face Marie again, because all of this is a lot to deal with. Marie is right there, in the flesh, smelling like winter and soap and a little bit of sunshine, and if she's honest with herself it's entirely overwhelming. She's dreamed of this day since the first time she ever talked to Marie, back in February when all of this was a distant dream no one thought would ever see the light of day.

But no, Marie is laughing and struggling to pronounce all of her words correctly and it's a little bit too adorable for Ariel to face head on, so she watches and Raygen crushes her for a few more minutes before she starts to drag her luggage into the room at the end of the hall. 

Brette see's her standing in the doorway looking semi shell shocked and offers a small smile. "It'll be fine, you know. The nervousness will go away."

She manages a smile. "That's what I'm hoping for, yeah." Brette's only just left when another voice is in her ear.

"We're sharing?" Marie comes up behind her, standing on her tip toes so she can see over Ariel's shoulder and into the room. 

Ariel can feel herself freeze, just for a moment, before she turns and smiles at the girl she's been getting to know for months. "Yeah, if that's... if that's okay?"

Her shy smile is enough of an answer for both of them.

~

Dinner on the second night goes surprisingly well, once Austin and Michelle have watched their episode of Glee and found their way to the kitchen that's recently been stocked with more food than anyone can really deem necessary, but. Austin makes the sauce and handles the pasta while Michelle makes her, according to Brette, 'stellar' garlic bread. When the 16 of them finally settle onto the dining room floor (they've pushed out the table, as it's only meant to fit ten, at the most) they don't even break off into little clumps like Ariel had assumed they would, instead just talking over one another and yelling across the room until they think they've earned the proper amount of attention. 

Michelle's bread is practically worshiped by Britta, who tells her she'll love anyone who can make a good meal, so she makes the list. Tasha only knocks her plate of spaghetti over twice, which must be some sort of record for her, and luckily they're hard wood floors so Britta's able to help her sop up the excessive sauce. 

Ariel sits close to Marie, the two of them laughing as Jessica attempts to feed Luisa and Savannah tells Emi some story from across the circle, ducking under the constant motion of people so they can still see each other through the madness.They notice, distantly, the way Austin keeps trying to nudge closer to Jo with jokes and making laughs, and the way Jo only scoots away nervously, like if he gets too close they'll both be burned. The two exchange a look and a confused shake of the head before they're forced into dancing to some song alongside an energetic Raygen.

The next few days carry on much like this, with late nights and messy meals and a lot of loud music that emanates out into the winter air and swirls with the snow. They set an aside entire day for watching all of their favorite movies- Tasha and Austin have brought the entire Harry Potter Series. It takes them all day (they start early in the morning, someone having done the math and realizing it's mostly impossible they'll last through the whole series) and late into the night, and by the time they've finished they've fallen asleep in heaps on the floor- Brette and Michelle stealing most of the couch with Raygen curled up on the end; Britta, Jo, Victoria, Austin and Tasha in a tangle of limbs and blankets. Jessica's got Luisa wrapped up in her arms with Savannah lying on the carpet, cuddled close to Emi. Marie and Ariel have occupied the space in front of the fire place; Linda and Emily having gone back to their room after they realized the complete lack of space left.

~

It's been nearly a week when Ariel and Marie finally manage to pull Jo aside, late one night while Austin and Britta take their turn with dishes. The two haul him by the hand and out onto the screened in balcony, huddled up in blankets and sweatshirts and each other.

"We've having an intervention," Ariel says, bumping knees with him from where they sit, inches apart. Jo looks panicked for a moment, eyebrows raised in easy worry as Marie nods in agreement with what Ariel's said.

"For what?" 

"It's about Austin," Marie starts. "You're... well, you'll barely let him be around you." She gives him a sad, supportive kind of smile. 

Ariel laughs a little at Jo's embarrassed expression before continuing on, tone understanding. "It's okay to be nervous, I mean... I get it." She glances over at Marie, trying to ignore the way her stomach starts to swirl when she smiles back at her. "But we've only got three weeks for now, and you can't afford to push him away."

Marie cuddles into Jo's side when he doesn't respond. "He loves you, Jo. Let him show it."

"I know, yeah," Jo says, voice quiet. "It's just scary, cause like, it's Austin, and he's so..." He pauses for a moment and glances through the glass door, where the view into the kitchen allows them to see Austin singing along to some song they can only hear the dull roar of as he dries the dishes. "He's really amazing."

"Try for us?" Ariel says, smile hopeful. 

Jo rolls his eyes. "Yeah, sure."

~

Overnight, the biggest snowstorm of the season hits.

Thankfully, though, it's not enough to keep them inside. Austin is the one who forces them into snow gear, gathers up all of their sweatpants and throws them at people until everyone's grumbling and dragging themselves out of bed. It's ten in the morning, which would be late for most of the population, but after a week of staying up past three talking they're all a little worn out. Everyone puts on at least half a smile, seeing how excited he is to be able to participate in his first snow fight, though, so they get dressed without too much complaining.

The teams are split up by cabin because it's confusing any other way, so they all set to work to build up their forts on their respective pieces of land. Marie and Luisa already have some strange, competitive twin vibe going, both of them giggling like mad men as they compete to see who can build up the bigger pile of snow balls first (Luisa's is bigger, but Marie's are tighter packed). By the time the half hour mark has passed both sides have pretty impressive barriers set up- despite Raygen and Tasha's attempt at sabotaging the second cabin by stepping on their snowballs and 'accidentally' kicking a nice dent in Emi and Savannah's newly built wall- and too many snowballs to count.

The fight is an utter mess.

"Brette, duck to your right! Austin's aiming one at you!" _Thunk_. "...other right."

"Raygen, Emily's going to get your fort! Savannah, help her cover!"  _Crash_.

It goes on for a while, or at least what seems like forever, before they all and up collapsed in the snow, breathing hard from exertion. 

"More intense than I thought," Austin says once he's managed to sit back up, pulling off his hat to unveil a mass of unkempt hair. Jo scoots over from his place beside him and fixes it back down with his fingers, a small smile playing on his lips. Only a few feet away, Ariel can see Austin's surprised and utterly content expression, and she gives Marie a look that easily conveys  _he did it_. 

It's Michelle that takes the silence as an agreement of a truce and offers up the best thing any of them have heard for hours. "Hot chocolate for lunch, anyone?"

**Author's Note:**

> Well that just happened.


End file.
